Starbucks Now Charging More for Your Basic Cup of Joe

This news probably won't faze coffee addicts or consumers who buy on impulse.

But the price of coffee at Starbucks Inc. (SBUX) has risen by 10 cents to 20 cents per cup on its regular drip coffee in most U.S. stores. The smallest cup, known as tall, now sells for $2.15, from $1.95 and gives you 12 ounces of brew.

If you have more expensive tastes, though, in that you opt for lattes and iced drinks, you're in luck, because there's no bump planned. In some 97% of the U.S. stores, there will be no price increases for latte, mocha, tea latte, Frappuccino, ice team, cold brew and Nitro.

The rise in Starbucks prices doesn't have to do with the cost of coffee prices per se. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices actually fell between April 2017 and April 2018, from $4.62 a pound down to $4.31 a pound.

Starbucks' lower-end competitor Dunkin' Donuts, owned by Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. (DNKN) in Canton, Mass., declined to respond to a request for comment when contacted by TheStreet. The prices of large and extra-large cups of coffee at Dunkin' are $2.09 for 20 ounces and $2.29 for 24 ounces, respectively.

Coffee at McDonald's Corp. (MCD) is $1 for small, 12 ounces; for medium, $1.29, 16 ounces; and for large, $1.49 and 21 ounces, respectively. At some stores, customers over 55 get a discount on their coffee.

A Starbucks spokesman said that the company has increased its prices 1% to 2% in the past year "on par with the industry practices and is in line with food away from home inflation" of 2.2% to 2.4% (from the Department of Labor Statistics).

The spokesman said the Seattle-based company periodically evaluates prices to balance the costs of running the business profitably with serving customers.